A ‘Pinafore Dress’ – if the name sounds unfamiliar, you must keep reading ahead. Pinafore dresses have always had a niche fan club of their own, but of late, thanks to high street brands like ‘Zara’ and ‘Mango’, this dress style has caught the mainstream attention of their loyal consumers in a big way.
What is a Pinafore Dress?
A pinafore dress is a structure-less short-length dress, whose hemline usually ends high up on the upper thighs, just below the hip area ends. The dress is usually straight-fitted and is famous for being styled in as many ways as you can think of. It has neither collars nor sleeves. Historically, the pinafore was worn as an apron, or a cover-up, decorative dress piece over the main dress, by the women of the house or the house help, as they indulged in the house chores. The comfortable, fluid silhouette of the dress allowed it to be worn on and off easily, and protected the main outfit underneath, as the woman carried on with doing the daily errands.
A modern-day representation of the same apron has been stylishly fashioned into a pinafore dress.
Ways to Wear a Pinafore Dress
It is no longer the typical cover-up dress that was only worn in the realms of the kitchen and dining area. A pinafore dress can be worn over a T-shirt, shirt, or vest. More importantly, these dresses are not just worn indoors anymore but are a very stylish statement to be worn for casual outings, lunches, dinners, date nights, vacations, or shopping outings. While you can style this cool, chic garment as stylishly as your creativity allows, we still share below some of the ideas from our inhouse styling expert’s desk:
- Style your dress with a round-neck T-shirt, a collared shirt, a tube top or a sheer top. With the sleeves and neck area of the top worn below showing off, the whole look turns out quite flattering.
- Play along with the fluid and structureless form of the pinafore dress and wear nothing beneath, except for the bralette. The short dress gives out an urban, cool, college pass-out vibe, and makes you look years younger.
- Wear a blazer over your pinafore dress for a semi-formal, yet powerful look.
- To lend some shape to the dress, you may wear a belt around the waist, though we feel it is a very clichéd style.
- Wear nothing above the waist, but only black net stockings on the legs, with the dress, to lend it an air of mystique.
- During winter, wear a cardigan, or sweatshirt over the dress to give it a skirt-like appearance. Again, this look gives out a very high school or fresh-out-of-the-college vibe.
- Wear your pinafore dress with flared denim for a very on-the-go look. You may even team it up with semi-formal trousers or pants for an effortless work look.
- For the more ‘adventurous with their style’ fashionistas out there, consider wearing your pinafore dress with a mini skirt, ending just above the dress’s hemline; a little bit of the dress showing off from the bottom.
- Wear a sheer top over the dress for a sexy look.
What Accessories to Wear with a Pinafore Dress?
As we have mentioned below, there is no count on how many ways you can style a pinafore dress by picking various elements from your wardrobe. It is just as versatile as maybe a pair of denim jeans or a white shirt. When it comes to accessorizing, mood, occasion, and personal aesthetic style are the key considerations.
– For an effortless urban look, wear nothing on the neck, but a couple of layered bracelets and a watch on both wrists.
– It all depends on the style and colour of your dress. You may either wear white, yellow or rose gold jewellery depending on what complements the vibe better.
– Usually, a clutch or a handbag looks best with such a dress. You may pick a high-end bag from Chanel, Lous Vuitton, or Balenciaga, or for the rest of the modest mortals like us, a Zara, Also, or a Charles Keith Bag also works very well.
– The accessory you can play most to your advantage when wearing a pinafore dress is the shoes. Mostly girls and women prefer cool sneakers to pair with their looks, but mules, pumps, wedges, and heels look good, too, depending on your overall look.
– Just ensure that you coordinate the overall vibe of the look well- all the elements like jewellery, shoes, and complementing garments should be synchronized to adhere to one well-defined vibe. Wearing a blazer, a lot of chunky jewellery and then high heels might not sit well together.
Where Can One Buy a Fascinating Pinafore Dress From?
The nomenclature of this dress style might sound new to you but it has been around for decades now. In fact, the style was very popular in the first half of the 1900s. Popular brands, in India, that you can reach out to when scouting for a stylish pinafore dress are:
- Zara
- Mango
- Gucci
- Guess
- Tommy Hilfiger
- Adidas
- Marks and Spenser
- Myntra
- Ajio
- Calvin Klein
With its body shape-defying silhouette, this dress style is a boon for every woman. Whether you are a teenage girl, a college goer, a corporate employee, or run your own show, there is a pinafore dress perfect for every woman out there.
Love,
Team LadyInRoseGold
